The Assimilation Interview for French Naturalisation: What to Expect
The entretien d'assimilation is the in-person interview in your French naturalisation file. Here is what it is, how it differs from the civic exam, and how to prepare.
After you submit your naturalisation file and the prefecture has checked it, you are called in for the assimilation interview, the entretien d'assimilation. It is an in-person conversation, conducted entirely in French, with an officer of the prefecture. For many applicants it is the most nerve-wracking part of the process, partly because it is harder to revise for than a written test. Understanding what it is for takes a lot of that anxiety away.
How it differs from the civic exam
It is important not to confuse the two assessments that the 2026 process involves. The civic exam is a written multiple-choice test of 40 questions, taken on a computer at an approved centre, with a fixed pass mark. The assimilation interview is a spoken conversation with a person, with no multiple-choice answers and no single pass score. They test different things. The civic exam checks specific knowledge. The interview checks whether you live as part of French society and whether your French holds up in a real exchange.
You can pass the civic exam and still need to satisfy the interview, and the other way around. They are separate steps, and your file needs both to go well.
What the officer is assessing
The interview generally rests on three things. The first is your ability to actually hold a conversation in French. The B2 level you proved on paper has to show up in the room, so the officer will talk with you naturally rather than quiz you from a list. The second is your adherence to the values of the Republic, such as liberty, equality, secularism, and the equality of women and men. The third is your personal path of integration, meaning your life in France: your work, your family, your ties to the country, and why you want to become French.
The conversation usually lasts somewhere around half an hour, though this varies. The officer is forming an overall impression, not marking a quiz, so honest and natural answers about your own life work far better than memorised speeches.
How to prepare
The best preparation is to be able to talk comfortably about your own situation in French. Be ready to explain your background, your reasons for settling in France, what you do, and how you take part in life around you. Make sure you can speak clearly about the core republican values and what they mean in everyday life, because a candidate who can recite facts but cannot discuss why they matter does not come across as assimilated.
Reviewing your own file before the interview is sensible, so that the dates and details you gave match what you say in person. Practising in French with someone, even informally, helps far more than reading silently, because the interview tests speaking and nothing else.
Stay accurate and stay calm
What an officer asks varies from one prefecture to another, and the official guidance can change. Treat any list of interview questions you find online, including this overview, as preparation for the type of conversation, not a script to memorise. For the formal position, check service-public.fr, and for a complex case consider a qualified adviser.
The interview tests your French and your integration in conversation. The civic exam tests knowledge you can build now, and a confident grasp of French institutions and values also makes the interview easier. PassCitizen has the full official civic question set with practice mode and timed mock exams, free and with no account required.
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